the problem is not Spokeo; the problem is YOU

[winterbadger]

I've seen several people frantically posting the latest viral goofiness on Facebook, and instead of stamping on it every single place, I'm just going to post here, once.

People are getting wound up and frantic about the fact that a website, spokeo.com, is selling personal data. The viral message tells everyone to HURRY, HURRY, go to the Spokeo website and opt out of their evul sellin' yur infoz plan!

Now, it's great that Spokeo has given people an opt-out option (assuming that it actually works--has anyone verified that it does?)

But the issue is not that Spokeo is selling this data. It's that YOU are giving it to them! All the data they have is available to them for free on the Internet or is estimated by them based on other available data.

If you want people to stop reselling information *you* provide to the world, publicly, for free--STOP PROVIDING IT!

But, I would suggest, a more rational response would be to STOP FREAKING OUT. Yes, data aggregators exist. Most of us on the Internet use them all the time--by using services that either give us information they've gained from others (have you *never* looked at goods suggested to you by some variation of "people who bought X also bought Y" really? never? have you never used Yelp or Angie's List or Trip Advisor to check reviews?) or providing us with services that are informed and refined by customer usage data. Horrified that people can see your street address? Really? You don't have a telephone, and you never receive mail, then? Shocked that people know your gender, or your favourite ice cream flavour, or where you went to university? Then why did you fill out that quiz that told anyone who uses it those things?

If you seriously want to take your personal info out of the hands of resellers, don't worry about Spokeo; there are dozens, probably hundreds more companies just like it; are you going to go to all their websites? Act at the source--stop posting information you don't want the world to know on the single greatest worldwide communication system in the history of humanity. (As for the stuff you've already posted, well, too late. :-) Data on the Internet is like plastic shopping bags--it sticks around forever.)

But maybe, just maybe, re-examine your mindless terror at people knowing basic information about you. Because if you really want to be invisible, you need to do much, much more than nuke your Facebook or Blogger account. You have to stop earning money, paying taxes, owning property, driving a car, participating in political and civic and professional organizations... and much more. All of those actions generate publicly available data about you. Information that anyone can access.

Think about why you think this is such a terrifying thing.

Then take a deep, deep breath and chill the heck out.

Comments

[ingenious76.livejournal.com]

Well said. The whole "the internet invades privacy" argument is somewhat misguided - if you're on the electoral roll, and a taxpayer, the powers that be know who you are already.

[winterbadger]

Yeah, I've been watching a lot of "Psych" lately and, while it's a contrived fictional setting, it makes the point that most people are screamingly oblivious to the amount of information they broadcast about themselves 24 hours a day.

I recall back when public records digitisation was just gettign started, and someone was arguing that it was a BAD, BAD thing that people were going to be able to look up things like deeds and court records online. The person from the government office in question said, "But this is only information that is available to the general public at the courthouse. You just have to walk in and look it up."

The angryperson took a breath, then came back, "Well, but they should have to *do* that--why make it easy?"

*sigh*

[josh-cru.livejournal.com]

Psych is a fun show!

[winterbadger]

I think so. By Season 4, Sean was gettign a little too silly, IMO, but I love the way it switches from comedy to drama and highlights the importance of observation. Very Holmesian--"You *see* Watson, you just do not *observe*!"

[sarah condry (from livejournal.com)]

I've think it's scary because I've had someone stalk me before (which is also precisely why I'm careful about what I post online). I'd love to go to all the other websites and opt out.

I have checked that my information is no longer available now that I've opted out.

[winterbadger]

Right, but anything that Spokeo (or Classmates or People Search or FindFree or USUS or SkipEase or ZabaSearch or... you get the point) has is something that you gave them. So there's really no need to be alarmed...at *them*.

[ticktockmary.livejournal.com]

And yet you posted here through Facebook (or your Facebook account is linked to this one) and using your real name.

[magaidhbhan.livejournal.com]

Well put!

I checked spokeo.com out when the crazy started, and they have nothing on me. Probably because I have all my settings on Facebook (the only place online that links my name, email addresses, physical address, and phone number) friends-only. OK, the internet is scary ... but spokeo does not somehow make it scarier! In fact, I was amazed by how *little* I could find about *anyone* I know. Matthieu doesn't exist; my parents have only address & phone number (which you can find in the yellow pages), my sisters don't exist, etc.

[winterbadger]

According to Spokeo, I'm female, married, and make...well...a lot more money than I actually make (more than I and my spouse did when I *was* married).

So, you know, all my secrets are out there... :-)

[kmusser]

Also specifically about Spokeo - I had checked them out, but all the data they supposedly had about me was either 10+ years out of date or just plain wrong - they think I have a kid! They're trying to convince people to buy data they don't actually have. If someone wants to pay for the crap data that they do have I'm not going to stop them.

[winterbadger]

And it's not like banks or car dealers (reputable ones, anyway) are going to rely on what some service like Spokeo says about your credit; there are real credit rating companies who have access to more information than Spokeo that do those jobs.

[ticktockmary.livejournal.com]

A bazillion times YES! I cannot make my bf see this; he thinks by avoiding facebook he's circumventing the system. Apparently he doesn't think the 10,000 other sites he visits are collecting any data at all.

The thing that really gets me is that most of these companies are harvesting data about you to target advertising to you. Ads! That's it! Not overlords planning world domination! There are going to be ads on webpages anyway, they have to make money somehow, so I really don't care if they're "targeted" or not.

I'll hop off the soapbox now before I really get going.

[winterbadger]

Your soapbox is always welcome. This dovetails with my complete befuddlement by the reaction the Google Streetview has gotten in some places, principally in the UK (that I've heard of). Despite the fact that it pixelates faces and the like, people are apparently horrified that a car is driving along the public roadway taking photos of what's going on either side, in full view of everyone standing about. It doesn't crane over garden fences or poke in through windows--it just sees what any other driver or pedestrian would see. But somehow this is a horrific invasion of privacy. To me it just seems like horrific stupidity on the part of the objectors...